


The Beautiful Barista

by absolute_garbage



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Baristas, F/F, sorry for being cliche
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-15
Updated: 2015-10-21
Packaged: 2018-04-09 12:02:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4348010
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/absolute_garbage/pseuds/absolute_garbage
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone's had a crush on a barista. But for Laura this is more than a crush. She's certain that the dark-haired barista at the local coffee shop is the love of her life and is determined to ask her out. If only she could overcome her awkwardness...</p><p>Rated T for Talentless.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Porn Incident

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah so if you've never had a crush on a barista, I don't recommend it. Anyway, this was just an idea I had. I'll probably write more but no promises. Thanks for reading!

Laura groaned as she flopped onto the worn, suede couch in the corner of the coffee shop. She ignored the petulant glares she received from the patrons around her. It was a small, quiet store that catered to a faithful crowd of business people. They all sat silently and solitarily at small tables, huddled over their expensive looking laptops. Laura huffed as she thought about the blog post she had to edit before the end of the day. She unzipped the backpack she’d brought with her, and pulled out her tattered, used laptop. It was nothing fancy, but it was all she could afford from the pay she got working as the lead blogger for the local newspaper.

She grimaced at the way her laptop’s hinges squeaked as she pulled open the screen. However, this noise paled in comparison to the loud moans and expletives produced by the last page she had open in her browser. Porn.

Laura let out a high-pitched yelp as she worked to exit out of the webpage. She quickly scanned the coffee shop only to find that all eyes were on her. She locked eyes with the shop’s barista, Carmilla who leaned smugly over the counter, fighting to repress a laugh. The girl was beautiful, with dark hair and dark eyes that contrasted her pale skin. It was the type of beautiful that took her breath away and ruptured her stomach to a swarm of butterflies. The type that caused a soft blush to coat Laura’s cheeks and soft tingles to dance over her lips. Her heart was already pounding from sheer embarrassment, but now it was attempting to leap from her ribcage and into the hands of the girl behind the counter.

Laura came to the shop almost everyday just to see Carmilla. It had been almost a month since the dark-haired girl started working there, and almost a month since Laura had fallen head over heels for her.

Carmilla raised her eyebrows and pointed to Laura’s laptop, the amusement still evident on her face. Laura quickly muted her computer before exiting out of her web browser. Once her crisis was solved, Laura immediately darted her eyes to find the beautiful barista. She was still leaning over the counter, absent-mindedly playing with the napkin holder, and gave Laura a smirk when their eyes connected once again. Laura wiped her clammy hands over the fabric of her jeans and moved to walk towards the girl. Unfortunately, her vision was obstructed by a tall, fairly buff young man in the store’s uniform. His nametag read Kirsch. He scratched his head through his short hair as he began to speak, “Sorry little hottie, but um my manager asked me to kick you out.”

Laura frowned and responded, “Listen, I’m sorry about the porn, but could I at least order something?” Kirsch shook his head in rejection of her request.

“No can do, little hottie.” he denied once again, “She specifically told me to make sure you left immediately.”

Laura sighed in defeat and packed her laptop into her bag as Kirsch watched over her. She walked to the store’s exit and threw one last glance over her shoulder to look at Carmilla. The dark-haired girl waved playfully as she walked through the doors.

* * *

 Laura returned to the coffee shop the next morning, purposefully leaving her laptop at home. She took in a deep breath before swinging open the door and striding inside. Her presence caused the store’s usual occupants to quickly look up from their laptop screens before resuming their work. There was a short line in front of the counter today, and Laura made sure to join it. She thought about what she would say to the barista today, and wondered if she’d ever work up the courage to ask her out. She couldn’t decide whether to be bold and say “Please go out with me, I think you’re the love of my life,” or to just act cool and pretend that she wasn’t having major heart palpitations. Laura unconsciously moved further up the line and she was rather unprepared to find herself looking directly at Carmilla. Her eyes scanned the seductive eyes framed by smudged eyeliner, and focused on the soft pink lips under her pointed nose. Her eyes jumped to the small silver name tag pinned to the girl’s uniform, reading ‘Carmilla’. Carmilla spoke and Laura was certain that her voice alone could impregnate her. It was husky, soft, and enticing.

“Hey there, porn-girl.” She began. “What can I get for you?”

Laura’s brain short-circuited and not unlike any other time she ordered, she was rendered speechless. She scanned the menu hanging behind the barista’s head before sputtering out a response. “C-coffee.” Once the idiotic response left her mouth, she felt a warm blush begin to spread across her cheeks. Carmilla was amused and chuckled at Laura’s awkwardness.

“Wow, I hate to break it to you cutie,” she teased. “But you’re going to have to be a little more specific.”

Laura died when she heard Carmilla call her cutie. She was certain that her friends would have to call her father and start preparing funeral arrangements. She tried to look unfazed by Carmilla’s teasing and replied, “I’ll have a medium dark roast with two cream puffs.”

“Ahh so porn-girl speaks English.” Carmilla said as she turns her back to prepare Laura’s order.

“Doyouwannahangoutlater?” Laura blurted out. Carmilla threw her an amused look over her shoulder while placing the lid onto the coffee cup.

“I didn’t quite catch that, cupcake,” she responded smoothly. Laura took a deep breath before coughing and mumbling, “Nothing.”

Carmilla reached into the glass display case next to the counter and placed the cream puffs into a paper bag. She placed Laura’s order onto the counter before ringing her up. “Well cutie, that’ll be five dollars and eighty-seven cents.”

Laura fumbled to pull her wallet from the pocket of her jeans and handed Carmilla a five and a one. “Keep the change,” she said, feeling cool. Carmilla shook her head and laughed at Laura’s dorkiness. She reached over the counter to pat the smaller girl’s hand. She smirked and said, “Time to go cutie, you’re holding up the line.” As Laura turned to leave the line, Carmilla called out to her, “See you tomorrow?”

Laura nodded furiously and Carmilla winked at her before taking the next customer’s order.

 

 


	2. The Bump

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the positive feedback, I've decided to make this an eight part series. This chapter is actually shorter than I intended, but no worries, the others will be longer.

Laura ungracefully plopped onto the cafe’s couch, causing it to creak under her weight. Although she was still embarrassed about _The Porn Incident_ , she’d brought her laptop along to the coffee shop in the hopes that she could get some work done. In all honesty, Laura hated working as a blogger. She felt looked down upon by journalists, not to mention she still didn’t make enough to move out of her dad’s house whilst being financially stable. Being an adult was _hard_. Today, she was writing about the influx of stray cats in her small town of Styria. She sighed dramatically to herself as she wallowed in boredom. She looked up from her laptop to find the customers around her shooting her their usual dirty looks. Laura desperately wanted to talk to Carmilla, but the barista looked busy as she wiped down tables on the other side of the store. Laura pouted to herself and decided it was time for a snack break. She left her laptop on the couch and trudged up to the counter. Today Kirsch, the tall dude who kicked her out after _The Porn Incident_ , was working the register. He gave her an enthusiastic smile when she appeared in front of him.

“Well if it isn’t the little porn-watching hottie,” he greeted. “I bet the little hottie wants something a little hot to drink, right?”

Laura rolled her eyes in response to Kirsch’s corny joke.

“Just give me some cream puffs,” she told him curtly. However, Kirsch wasn’t done joking. His grin grew larger and Laura compared his appearance to that of an overly excited puppy.

“Oh I get it,” he said. “The little hottie wants a hot little snack!”

Laura suddenly became aware of a sweet scent and warm heat radiating from a body next to her. She couldn’t fight the way her face reddened and her heartbeat increased when her brain recognized that it was in fact Carmilla’s body next to hers.

“Hey, cutie.” she said to Laura, who stood silently, internally freaking out over being so close to the love of her life. Carmilla moved behind the counter and gave Kirsch a light shove. “Little hottie is my customer,” Carmilla fussed at him. “You’re dismissed, bye.”

Kirsch frowned and glumly picked up a broom to continue cleaning the section of the shop that Carmilla had left unattended. The barista wordlessly stuffed some cream puffs into a paper bag before turning to speak to Laura.

“Well you’re mighty quiet today.” she observed. Laura snapped out of her daze and quickly spoke the thought that was clouding her mind.

“You think I’m a little hottie?” she asked, making sure to look anywhere but into Carmilla’s eyes. The girl smirked as she handed Laura the bag of pastries. Laura internally swooned at the feel of Carmilla’s warm fingers brushing against hers.

“On the house.” she told Laura. “Sorry if Kirsch made you uncomfortable.”

Laura beamed with happiness and watched as Carmilla’s playful smirk morphed into a sincere, caring smile. Overcome with adoration for this new, considerate side of the barista, Laura fished a crumpled ten dollar bill from the pocket of her jacket. She shoved it into the tip jar next to the register and looked back at Carmilla, awaiting a gracious thank you from the dark-haired girl.

“For...your services,” Laura stammered. Carmilla swiftly raised her eyebrows in question, the girl across from her melting at the adorable look of confusion on her face. Laura took a moment to assess her word choice for anything that could have been interpreted as an insult.

“Oh!” she quickly realized. “Definitely not as in like a hooker type situation! I mean thanks for being so great and awesome and caring! Not that I wouldn’t hire you as a hooker, but the tip was for being a barista.”

Carmilla slowly nodded her head before replying, “You’re full of surprises, cutie.”

Laura looked at her in confusion.

“First porn, now hookers...you must be into some pretty kinky stuff.”

Carmilla waited for the usual pink blush to dot Laura’s face before finishing her off with a flirtatious wink.

"Bye creampuff." She cooed to Laura.

Laura's heart had actually stopped. She was sure of it this time. Her mind was racing, already trying to interpret Carmilla's actions and decide if she was actually flirting with her.

The barista laughed as the shorter girl gave an awkward smile and half wave while walking backwards to her spot on the couch. However, while Laura was focused on sending heart eyes to her favorite barista, she was not focused on her surroundings. She felt her back collide into something hot and she shouted in surprise when she turned to find that she’d made a curly redhead spill her coffee all over a clean white shirt. The woman screeched and began breathing heavily.

“Goodness gracious, do you see what you’ve done to my shirt!?”

Well crap, Laura thought. She hated confrontation.

“I’m so sorry miss, um can I give you my number?” Laura asked apprehensively.

“What?” the redhead replied in a shrill voice. “Young lady this is no time for pleasantries or flirting!”

“No, not like that!” Laura quickly added. She didn’t understand how all of her conversations went downhill so fast. Her mind was still preoccupied with thoughts of Carmilla and how lame she must seem to her right now and the hot coffee seeping into the fabric of her jeans. She wondered if changing her facebook status to “wow there’s hot coffee searing my butt” would make her seem weird as in quirky yet lovable, or just plain weird.

“What I meant to say is let me give you my number so I can pay for your dry cleaning.” Laura explained defeatedly. On top of her daily runs to the coffee shop, her generous tips to Carmilla, and her monthly porn subscriptions, the costs were really starting to add up. She'd never be able to afford a new laptop at this rate. The redhead, Perry, put Laura’s number into her phone, and left the cafe in a fluster. The short brunette grabbed some napkins from the counter to dry the coffee that was quickly cooling on the back of her jeans. She avoided eye contact with Carmilla, who handed her the napkin holder, pretending that the gorgeous girl didn’t have a front row seat to the debacle that would now be known as, _The Bump_.

Laura sulked back to her seat on the couch, and subtly pressed the napkins onto her butt to absorb the cold coffee. She finished her blog post in record time, and left the coffee shop in a whirl of angst and embarrassment.

Now she’d have to wait for Carmilla to forget about _The Porn Incident_ and _The Bump_ before she could ask her out.

 


	3. Lunch Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura hangs out at the cafe with Lafontaine, who piles on the embarrassment in front of Carmilla. Fortunately, they make up for it by inviting the barista to sit with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading :)

Laura waved Lafontaine over to the two seater table she was sitting at. She was happy to have a reason not to work while at the cafe today. Hopefully, she'd impress Carmilla by showing that she had friends and wasn't some weird loner. Laf was all smiles as they greeted Laura with a bear hug.

“What’s up, frosh?” They piped.

“Lafontaine, stop calling me that!” Laura joked as she returned the hug. 

She laughed, and fondly remembered the simpler times of college. She missed the days where her father sent money and care packages filled with cookies and bear spray.

“Did you order yet?” The ginger asked her.

“Nope, I was waiting for you.” she responded. The pair made their way to the counter where Carmilla was waiting with a curious expression on her face.

“Hey, cupcake,” she addressed Laura. “You know, I was beginning to think that you were just a weird loner. Nice to see that you have friends, besides me of course.”

Laura looked to her feet as a huge smile broke across her face. She was happy to hear that the dark-haired girl considered them friends. Or at least to be on friendly terms. She wasn’t exactly sure of the difference and made a mental note to think about it later. For now, she was glad that her plan was already paying off. Maybe by the end of the week, Carmilla might actually see her as a fully functional human being! She cleared her throat and turned when she heard Laf’s voice behind her.

“Laura...hey Laura... Earth to Laura?” they called out while snapping their fingers in front of her face. Carmilla snickered at the brunette’s trance.

“What do you recommend off the menu?” they asked. It dawned on Laura that she hadn’t actually tried anything from the shop besides coffee and desserts. Now that she paid attention to the items listed, it shocked her to find that the cafe served real food. Like hot food, that came from a grill. It was a major development and sure to take a toll on her wallet.

“Oh wow, I didn’t know they served food here.” She voiced her thoughts.

This prompted a shared chortle from Lafontaine and Carmilla. Laura quickly scolded herself for her word vomit. It seemed inevitable that she would make herself appear dorky and idiotic in front of the barista.

“Sweetheart, you come in everyday to order from me, and you’ve never noticed the kitchen in the back?” Carmilla asked as her laughter died down. But the public shaming was not over and Lafontaine quickly joined in.

“Wait, she comes here every day?” They ask in amazement. “No wonder she never has time to hang out anymore!”

Laura felt a deep flush make its way from her collarbones to the tips of her ears, and she added the tomato red pigment of her skin to her list of embarrassment. Carmilla looked at her with soft eyes, and Laura was certain that the barista was sending her a nonverbal message of appreciation. She rested her elbows on the counter and gave Laura a tender smile before directing her attention towards Lafontaine to resume the teasing.

“Well of course not, she’s too busy being my favorite customer to hang out with anyone else.”

Lafontaine wiped the corners of their eyes before patting Laura on the back.

“Hey, it’s alright Laura,” they spoke in a solemn tone. “We’ve all had a crush on the barista before.”

Laf resumed laughing, not realizing that they were alone in the hilarity this time. Laura’s eyes widened when they connected with Carmilla’s and they both quickly looked away. Now Laura was on edge. She wasn’t ready for the barista to know of her feelings. Over the past month she’d tried to be as subtle as possible, and now it was all ruined. She took a few deep breaths and decided it was best to act like Laf never said anything. Maybe Carmilla would just forget about it until she worked up the nerve to ask her out. She cleared her throat and waited for Laf to silent down.

“Sooo, Carmilla, what do you recommend from the menu?”

Hearing her name from Laura’s lips caused the barista to tentatively look up from the counter. Laura wished she could tell Carmilla just how adorable she looked when her tousled hair framed her face like that and her cheeks were all rosy. The gears in Laura’s brain began slowly turning. If Carmilla’s cheeks were rosy, she must have been blushing. And if she was blushing, she must have been embarrassed. But why on Earth would the beautiful, confident barista be embarrassed? And come to think of it, why didn’t she tease Laura about having a crush on her?

“You know, I think that was the first time you’ve used my name, _Laura_.” Carmilla said, trying out the brunette’s name on her tongue. It sounded sacred coming from her mouth. Laura let the sound of the barista’s voice infiltrate her memory, and she could already hear the syllables bouncing around in her mind.

“I recommend the grilled cheese.” Carmilla said, finally answering the question. Laura giggled to herself, causing her companions to send her curious looks.

“Grilled cheese is my favorite food.” She explained.

Carmilla hummed in appreciation. “A woman after my own heart.”

Laura stayed calm this time in response to the barista’s flirting. She was glad that they were already moving on from the whole ‘crush on a barista’ thing. Laf ordered them two grilled cheese sandwiches, insisting on paying for a very broke Laura. But that didn’t stop the said girl from putting some change into the tip jar. This time, she made sure to refrain from any comments that could be misinterpreted. Carmilla only rolled her eyes with a smile. She sent Laura her usual wink before the girl left to sit with Lafontaine. 

* * *

 "But Laura, I need _more_!" Lafontaine whined in protest.

Laura gave them a bone-chilling glare and stayed silent. Laf had forced her to retrieve extra ketchup packets three times already. After finding that they were just stashing the packets under Laura's tray, she refused to make any more trips to the counter to ask Carmilla for condiments. Although part of her was giddy to be able to share her crush with one of her best friends, Laura was mostly annoyed by their attempts to play matchmaker.

"Fine," the ginger said disappointedly. " I'll just get them myself."

Laura sighed in relief and took time to finally take a bite from her greasy grilled cheese sandwich. She closed her eyes and moaned as her tongue made contact with the crunchy, buttery surface of the toasted bread. She heard the scraping of metal chairs against the floor, announcing Lafontaine's return. But then she smelled the sweet perfume and warm presence that she knew belonged to her favorite barista. Laura opened her eyes to confirm her assumptions and was surprised to find that she was correct. In front of her, Laf had a toothy grin plastered on their face and Carmilla had pulled up a chair between the two.

“Lafontaine, I thought you were just going to get ketchup!” Laura whisper yelled at the smug ginger across the table. They just shrugged and began to eagerly push french fries into their mouth. Carmilla cleared her throat to gain Laura’s attention. She sent a smirk her way before biting into half of a grilled cheese sandwich. The short brunette focused her attention on the way the barista’s lithe, pink tongue ran along her upper lip to remove the crumbs left from the sandwich. Laura felt her heart skip a beat and she wondered how any person could make such a mundane activity like eating, so beautiful.

“I hope you don’t mind if I hang around here for my lunch break,” Carmilla said to Laura. She sounded so cool and casual that Laura automatically answered yes before she even understood the question.

“I also hope you don’t mind sharing,” she said in her usual indifferent tone.

It wasn’t until then that Laura noticed that the dark-haired girl was currently eating half of her sandwich. She watched in awe as the girl reached over to pick some fries off of her tray. She couldn’t recall why she hadn’t spent more time appreciating Carmilla’s pale hands. More specifically her short, trimmed fingernails. She wondered if the barista was single, or if she slept around. She felt stupid for not thinking about it until now.

“Are you going to stare, or are you  going to eat, cutie?” Carmilla asked her as she opened up a packet of ketchup to dribble onto a french fry.

Laura blushed and began to wolf down some fries, two and three at a time. If she was going to be sharing her food, she at least wanted to be able to eat as many fries as possible. She glanced nervously at the barista who gracefully slid another fry into her mouth.

“So creampuff, what do you do for a living?” Carmilla questioned, leaning back into her chair.

Laura internally groaned. She knew it would only be a few moments now until the love of her life realized what a total loser she was. Oh well, she thought. It was fun while it lasted.

“I’m a blogger for The Daily Styria,” she said between mouthfuls.

Laura chastised the lazy side of her for talking with her mouthful in front of the most gorgeous woman on Earth. But Carmilla only chuckled and asked her to repeat herself. This time, Laura swallowed before repeating her answer. Lafontaine silently ate as they watched the interaction between the pair. Laura recognized that they were making the same concentrated face that they made while watching Shark Week.

For the better part of twenty minutes, Laura told Carmilla about growing up in Styria and going to college with Lafontaine at Silas University. She was surprised, yet grateful that the barista refrained from her usual teasing and witty remarks. The dark-haired girl revealed that her mother was the owner and manager of the coffee shop, but quickly shifted the topic away from her family. Their conversation was interrupted when Carmilla checked the time on her phone and declared that her break was over. She wiped her fingers with some of Lafontaine’s napkins and stood up. Laura stared as she slowly flexed her arms above her head and stretched. She groaned and rolled her neck before bringing her attention back to Laura.

“Sorry that I have to go, sweetheart, I had fun.” She began. “Why don’t we do it again tomorrow?”

The barista left without waiting for a reply and gave a quick nod to Lafontaine as she passed. Laura and Lafontaine left shortly after, with Laura promising to make it up to them. She honestly felt bad that the ginger ended up third-wheeling on their lunch date. On the other hand, she felt like she owed a lot to Laf for bringing Carmilla to sit with them. They had pushed Laura out of her comfort zone and into the waiting arms of her beautiful barista. She only wondered if they could sense that to Laura, this was way more than a crush.

 


	4. Was She...Flirting?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla and Laura get closer, but Laura is oblivious to Carmilla's feelings for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this helps soothe some of the broken hearts and emotional pain that the last episode caused. As always, thanks for reading! I really appreciate the kudos and comments :)

Laura giggled as she watched Carmilla put two straws in her mouth, pretending to be a vampire with vicious fangs. The barista waggled her eyebrows before sending a flirtatious smile to the short brunette. After they ate lunch together the previous day, Laura gained the confidence to sit at a table closer to the counter and directly in the barista's line of sight. She was currently conducting research on her laptop for a blog post about the ongoing turf war between some of Silas's student groups. However, it was hard to focus when she had such a great view of Carmilla and the said girl was bent on distracting her. Laura snuck longing glances at the dark-haired beauty when she wasn't looking, and when the barista caught her in the act, she rolled her eyes while fighting a bashful smile.

 Laura had also decided to stay at the cafe for longer periods of time. Now that she knew there was a lunch menu, she wouldn't have to go home whenever her stomach growled for something other than cream puffs. As she thought, she subconsciously diverted her attention to Carmilla, who was watching the clock on the wall above the front entrance. The dark-haired girl turned and opened a backdoor, which Laura presumed led to the kitchen, before yelling out to Kirsch that she was taking her break. Laura felt her heart pound and she quickly assessed her appearance in the reflection of her darkened laptop screen. She had taken time to curl her hair today and put on a casual dress instead of her usual jeans and a t-shirt. When her dad asked her about the change, she said that she just felt like looking nice. Really, she did it to impress Carmilla. She watched as the barista slid over the counter and strode her way. She calmly slumped into the chair opposite to Laura and propped her elbows onto the table, resting her head in her hands.

“Hey.” She said to Laura, who was hunched underneath the table, closing her laptop and placing it into her bag.

“Hey Carm!” The brunette replied. Carmilla’s usual smirk slid into place at Laura’s enthusiasm.

“You look absolutely delectable today, cutie." She told her, batting her eyelashes. "I hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of ordering us a grilled cheese."

"Wow Carm, that's...really sweet of you." Laura said with a small gasp. She began to take deep breaths to keep herself from blushing and giggling like a fool. Unfortunately, this led her to choke on her own saliva and launch herself into a coughing fit. Carmilla looked on with worried eyes and abruptly moved from her seat to crouch beside Laura and rub her back in soft, soothing circles. She waited for the coughing to die down before jogging to the counter to fetch Laura some water. Despite her efforts to remain unaffected, Laura felt her cheeks heat up with color due to a potent cocktail of embarrassment and oxygen deprivation. Carmilla quickly returned with a glass of water and a plate of grilled cheese with fries. Laura noticed that the concern was still etched into the girl’s flawless features, so she attempted a weak smile to soothe her.

"You had me worried there for a second," she said as she slid into her seat again. Her dark eyes swept over Laura's face as she gulped down the water. “But it’s nice to know that I take your breath away.”

* * *

 Later that week, after much pleading and probing, Laura managed to get Carmilla to open up about her personal life. The barista was hesitant at first, but became more comfortable with opening up as Laura shared more about herself. She explained that she majored in philosophy in college, and after graduating, spent several years traveling Europe with her sister. Laura found out that at age twenty-seven, Carmilla was five years her senior. She was surprised to find that Carmilla's older age was a turn on for her. She idly thought about the level of experience that the pale woman likely possessed and daydreamed about the possible sexual exploits that they could engage in. Carmilla told Laura that she came back to Styria at her mother's request, but wouldn’t talk anymore about her mother. As she spoke, Laura paid attention to the emotions that fluctuated through the taller girl's eyes. Nostalgia, happiness, grief, animosity, and bitterness. But she always looked at Laura with the kind, caring eyes that the short brunette had fallen in love with.

The routine went on for the rest of the month. Laura would stay at the cafe longer than usual, and Carmilla would eat lunch with her during her break. Laura was becoming less awkward around the barista and Carmilla was becoming more advantageous in her teasing. She thought nothing of it. In fact, sometimes she doubted that the dark-haired girl felt the same way. She was all sexy and confident and mysterious, while Laura was dorky and undeniably awkward. She was an eleven out of ten, while Laura considered herself to be a measly four or five. She frequently wondered if she was in over her head for chasing after the barista. Lafontaine had assured her that Carmilla was definitely flirting, which meant that she was definitely interested. But then again, for all Laura knew, Carmilla could be the type of person who flirted with all of their friends and was just naturally really touchy-feely. What constituted as flirting, anyway?

“Hey, Carm,” Laura tentatively asked one afternoon. “Why do you sit with me everyday?”

Carmilla immediately looked up from the book that was opened in front of her. Her face was unreadable, and Laura nervously traced her fingers in random shapes along the table. Carmilla stilled them with her hand and tangled her fingers with the shorter girl’s. Laura’s breath hitched and her skin began to tingle with warmth. The older girl rubbed her thumb along the back of Laura’s hand as she answered, “I thought it was obvious, creampuff.”

Laura became overwhelmed, and pulled her hand away. She blushed, embarrassed, after seeing the confusion and disappointment on Carmilla’s face.

“I have to go,” she explained weakly. She gathered her bag and rushed out of the shop.

* * *

If Carmilla was offended, she didn’t show it. Eventually, the barista started sitting directly next to Laura, instead of across from her. She would brush the hair from the younger girl’s face and casually drape her arm over her chair. Sometimes, she would ask about Laura’s blogging, but usually she would sit in silence or read as Laura ate the food she bought for her. Laura insisted on buying her own food, but Carmilla wouldn’t have it. Even when Laura tried to sneak money into the tip jar, the barista would spend the money on snacks and desserts for the smaller girl. One day, as Laura arrived and went to sit at her usual table, she found a bag of cream puffs and hot coffee already waiting for her. Carmilla winked at her from the counter, where she was serving a businessman in a stuffy looking suit. Laura’s only complaint was that now, she couldn’t use getting up to order as an excuse to talk to her favorite barista. She was starting to feel like the longing stares and twenty to thirty minute intervals in which they spent time together weren't enough. But she refused to ask Carmilla out until she knew for sure, one-hundred and ten percent that the woman of her dreams liked her back. After much deliberation, Laura worked up the courage to talk to Kirsch one day while he was working the register. In her peripheral vision, she eyed Carmilla furiously mopping a brown puddle of spilled coffee by the table furthest from the counter.

“Hey little hottie, what can I get for you?” Kirsch greeted her happily. Laura scratched her neck and avoided eye contact as she spoke.

“Could you do me a favor?” She asked.

“Anything to help a hottie.” He replied seriously. “What is it?”

Laura gulped. This was it. This was the only way she could know for sure. At least without asking Carmilla directly, which she wouldn’t dream of doing in a thousand years.

“Well I was thinking that since you work with Carmilla, maybe you could possibly-”

“Say no more, little hottie.” He cut her off. “You want me to see if she has the hots for you.”

Laura’s eyes widened in surprise. “How’d you know?”

“A bro just knows.” He said smugly.

“So you’ll do it?” She asked with a hopeful smile. Kirsch nodded his head with a bright smile in affirmation before signaling for her to leave. However, it was too late and Carmilla had already approached the counter.

“He’ll do what, cutie?” She asked, moving to stand in front of Laura, almost possessively. She crossed her arms over her torso and squinted her arms at Kirsch.

“I already told you that _little hottie_ was my customer Kirsch,” she practically snarled. “Scram.”

Kirsch shrugged at Laura and stepped behind the kitchen doors, while Carmilla took his place at the register. The barista eyed Laura suspiciously, but asked no questions. Instead, she pulled a small jewelry box from behind the espresso machine in the back. She opened it, revealing a sleek, black bracelet with tiny bat charms on it.

“I saw this in the thrift store yesterday,” the dark-haired girl began. “It reminded me of the obsession I had with vampires when I was a kid.”

She reached for Laura’s arm and fastened it around the shorter girl’s wrist.

“I want you to have it, to think of me when you’re not here.” She explained. “Maybe now...you’re starting to understand why I sit with you everyday.”

Laura didn’t understand. She still refused to believe that Carmilla actually liked her. But she nodded her head anyway, nodding and falling even harder for the woman before her, who smiled softly as she looked into Laura's eyes. That night, Laura slept with the bracelet under her pillow, thinking about Carmilla, and wondering if the barista thought about her too.

 


	5. Kicked Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny makes an appearance in the cafe, leading to a throw down between she and Laura. Kirsch talks to Carmilla about her feelings for Laura.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only a few chapters left! I meant to upload this earlier, but I've been distracted by Hangrid (any fellow shippers?)  
> Also, I've been feeling a little frustrated due to the current state of Hollstein, but nevertheless I'm staying strong.  
> This one's a little short, but I'll make up for it in the next chapter.  
> Thanks for reading! :)

Laura watched a wave of goosebumps wash upon her forearm. She pretended to be focused on reading a page in the book that Carmilla loaned her, but it was impossible to concentrate when she could feel the barista’s warm fingertips on her wrist as they played with her bracelet. She read the same sentence at least twenty times, too distracted to even care. She was disappointed when the pale woman’s fingers left her wrist and she stood to leave.

“I gotta get back to work cutie.” She said in her raspy voice. Since business was especially slow this morning, Carmilla had left the counter to sit with the short brunette. But now there was a tall ginger woman in a stuffy looking pantsuit huffing impatiently at the register, waiting to be served. Carmilla took slow deliberate steps back to the counter, leaving Laura to stare unabashedly at her swaying hips. The younger girl went back to reading her book, a light novel about a fictional character in college who was slowly falling in love with her roommate. She was surprised that Carmilla owned it. Carmilla looked tough as nails and acted too cool to care about anyone or anything. However, Laura was starting to realize that it was all an act. This wonderful, tough-looking, dark-haired girl was a hopeless romantic and cared about her way more than she originally thought. She saw it when Carmilla brought her refills on her coffee and sat with her, silently admiring Laura as she worked. Or when she teased Laura and made ridiculous amounts of physical contact to push her out of her comfort zone. Not to mention that the barista bought Laura a bracelet as a mark of friendship, because _wow_ , _who does that?_  Laura felt a small smile tug at her lips from just thinking about how amazing Carmilla was. She was drawn from her thoughts by the raised voice of the tall ginger ordering at the counter. The woman seemed to be warming up to give a vocal beatdown to Carmilla, who stood idly with the same apathetic look on her face. Laura quickly closed her book and stumbled out of her chair. Her feet carried her to the counter and she felt pure anger bubbling inside of her. She could not imagine what kind of twisted person would ever raise their voice at the barista. Sure, Carmilla could be provocative and teasing sometimes, but she always showed respect for her customers and did her job with the utmost professionalism.

Laura appeared behind the ginger woman and reached up to tap her on the shoulder. The tall woman whipped around to face Laura, her eyes softening after landing on the short, timid looking brunette. Laura sucked in a breath and tried to make her voice sound as intimidating as possible.

“Listen, I don’t know who you think you are,” she began. “But you have no right to yell at Carmilla like that.”

“Mind your own business,” the woman scoffed. “This barista has been nothing but rude, I’m just giving her a taste of her own medicine.”

“The only rude one here is you.” Laura said as she stepped closer to the tall woman. She stood on her toes to look taller and puffed out her chest. Carmilla rolled her eyes and decided to intervene.

“Look creampuff, what you’re trying to do is sweet.” she told Laura. “But I can handle whatever insults Xena here has prepared for me.”

“Carm, you deserve to be treated better than this.” Laura says while still staring down Danny. “In fact, you shouldn’t even serve this...this bully!”

The tall redhead was visibly becoming even more impatient. She clenched her jaw and spoke.

“I don’t have time for this,” she said as she turned from Laura back to Carmilla. “Can you please call off your little girlfriend?”

That did it for Laura. She grabbed some sugar packets from the counter and ripped them open before throwing sugar onto the tall woman’s face and torso.

“WHAT THE HELL?” She exclaimed while wiping sugar away from her eyes. In her blind fury, she placed a hand on Laura’s shoulder, pushing the shorter girl and causing her to fall onto her butt. Carmilla hopped over the counter, ready to fight the redhead, when a booming, stern voice spoke out.

“I will not tolerate violence in my coffee shop.”

All eyes in the room turned to a tall, skinny, middle-aged woman standing in the entrance of the cafe. She had long dark hair that was pulled into a tight bun, and tired eyes that held a fierce gaze. She wore a black power suit with sharp, black heels, boosting her height so that she towered over everyone in the shop. She turned to Laura, who was still on the floor and pointed at her with a sharp, crimson fingernail.

“You.” She said in her frightening voice. “I’ve seen you here before. You were watching obscenities in my shop.”

Laura shuddered.

“I want you to leave, and never come back.”

Carmilla was quick to defend the small, frightened girl huddled on the floor.

“Mother, wait!” She said. “Laura was only standing up for me. Beanstalk was yelling at me so Laura stepped in, but then Beanstalk pushed her and she fell.”

Carmilla helps Laura to her feet and gently rubs her arms in a soothing motion. They wait in silence as Carmilla’s mother processes her daughter’s testimony. The woman directs her attention to the tall redhead.

“And what is your name?” She asked sternly.

“It’s Danny, um, Danny Lawrence.” The woman nervously replied.

Carmilla’s mother gives Laura and Danny one last dirty look before glancing to her daughter’s pleading eyes.

“I want the two of you to leave and not come back for the rest of the day.” She said, surprising the pair. She nods at Carmilla before making a swift exit. Danny promptly left and Carmilla watched as Laura gathered her things.

“You can keep the book.” She told Laura when she tried to return it at the counter. She placed a hand on Laura’s arm and leaned over the counter, her lips hovering beside the shorter girl’s ear. Laura shivered and she felt her heart pounding in her throat.

“Thanks for sticking up for me, cutie.” The barista whispered, her breath tickling Laura’s ear. She moved her lips over to Laura’s cheek and hesitated, before briefly pressing them into her soft skin. Laura felt her face heat up, but she was too delighted to care about the blush. She let a huge smile creep onto her face and Carmilla pulled back smirking. The taller girl winked at Laura before motioning for her to leave.

The brunette skipped to the exit, feeling light as a feather. She was stopped by Kirsch who pulled her aside next to the door.

“Hey bro, I think Carmilla likes you.” He said with a smug grin.

“Thanks, Kirsch.” She laughed before finally leaving.

* * *

 Carmilla sighed in boredom for the hundredth time that afternoon, causing Kirsch to look at her in concern. He approached the dark-haired girl slowly, hoping not to be a target of her vicious sarcasm.

“Hey, do you want to take your break?” He asked. “It’s past your usual lunch time.”

Carmilla stayed silent, shaking her head before propping it on her fist with her elbow resting on the counter. She sighed again and Kirsch decided that it was time for some bro advice.

“Is it because little hottie is gone?” He asked knowingly. Carmilla only let out a deep groan, so Kirsch continued.

“Listen, as one lady lover to another, you need to ask her out.”

Carmilla stood up straight, and turned to face Kirsch with an accusatory finger.

“What?” She demanded. “What makes you think I like Laura? Did she say something about me?”

“It’s not my place to tell you,” he said. “All I’m saying, is that if you want to see her more often, you should go out with her.”

Kirsch returned to the kitchen, leaving Carmilla to spend the rest of her shift thinking about the small brunette that wasn’t there. The entire cafe seemed empty without her. She began to think that Kirsch was right. She wanted to be around Laura all the time. And if to do that she had to ask her out, she would.

 


	6. Making a Move

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla gathers up the nerve to do what Laura's been too afraid to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been awhile. But the season is coming to a close so I really need to finish this. Also, sorry for the long wait. Thanks for sticking with this!
> 
> This chapter is fluffy and happy because the past few episodes have been an emotional rollercoaster. Thanks for reading! :)

Laura wished someone had given her a warning, because she was not prepared for the near heart attack she endured when she walked to the cafe that morning. She saw a slim figure, resting against a wall near the entrance. And as she got closer, she realized that it was none other than Carmilla. Her smirk was already in place and she looked at Laura as if she was ready to devour her. Laura gulped when the the dark-haired girl began walking towards her to meet her. The barista waited until she was within arms reach to wrap her arms around Laura’s torso, pressing them tightly together.

“I missed you yesterday.” She whispered when she slowly pulled away. Laura felt her temperature rise. When did it get so hot?

"Are you okay?" Carmilla asked, her eyebrows creased with concern. "You're turning really red."

"Yeah, just got a little dizzy." The shorter girl responded after clearing her throat. Carmilla grabbed her hand and led them inside to their usual table inside the cafe. She pulled out Laura's chair for her and squeezed her on the shoulder before sitting down. She leaned over the table and looked at Laura with an unreadable gaze. It wasn't until the brunette began to squirm in her seat that she looked away.

"How was your day yesterday?" Carmilla asked. Laura summed up the events that happened after she was kicked out of the cafe the previous day: walking home, having to buy overpriced coffee from a pretentious cafe, and finishing up some articles for the newspaper. None too thrilling. As she went through the mundane details of her day, Carmilla listened with rapt attention, throwing in a witty comment every now and then. She never broke eye contact while Laura spoke. Even when Kirsch, at the counter, asked for her to man the register for a while, she refused and stayed with the brunette. When Carmilla realized that Laura was finished speaking, she sighed and began tracing patterns on the surface of the table.

“Laura…” she began. Her composure was not confident and cocky as usual, but instead insecure and timid. She ran a hand through her hair and abruptly stood from her seat.

“Why don’t I get you some coffee?” She said, more to herself than to Laura. She made her way over to the counter, leaving the brunette confused. Laura followed her to the counter, where the dark-haired barista was shooing Kirsch out of the way so she could begin making Laura’s usual order. Laura watched as Carmilla bustled behind the counter, preparing a new pot of coffee and pouring it into a cup for Laura. When the barista dipped under the register to grab some desserts from the display case, Laura cleared her throat to get her attention.

“Just a minute, cupcake, I’m almost done.” Carmilla huffed, without looking up at the smaller woman. She compiled the cup of coffee and the paper bag stuffed with sweets onto the counter. Laura fished a five dollar bill from the wallet in the back pocket of her jeans.

“You know that I’m not going to make you pay for this, creampuff.” Carmilla told her, refusing to take the money from Laura’s outstretched hand. The brunette blushed, softly smiling as she waved the bill in front of Carmilla’s face.

“Carmilla, you’re going to lose your job if you keep giving me free coffee.”

The barista shrugged before going quiet again. She watched as Laura pouted in defeat, stuffing the cash into the tip jar instead. Carmilla rolled her eyes and rested her elbows on the counter, resting her face in her hands. Laura’s heart pounded as Carmilla’s eyes scanned her face, her eyes roaming from her lips to her nose and cheeks, up to her eyes.

“Listen, cutie,” She said, as her composure turned insecure once again.

“If you really want to compensate for all of this free stuff…maybe you could give me your number…and we could go out sometime ?”

She looked at Laura expectantly, twirling a strand of hair around her index finger. The brunette’s eyes were comically wide and her cheeks were reddening. She moved her mouth as if she was trying to speak, but no words came out. The pair stared at each other in awkward silence, until a man behind Laura asked if she was done ordering. Laura gathered her coffee and desserts and walked back to her table, looking back at the barista who wore a defeated and disappointed expression as she prepared the man's order.

* * *

 

For the next hour, Laura sat huddled at her table, sneaking glances at Carmilla over her laptop screen. Every now and then, their eyes would meet and she would quickly look away in awkward embarrassment. She knew the easiest thing to do would be to get up and tell Carmilla that she didn’t actually reject her, and was only caught off guard. But the barista looked so hurt, and the last thing she wanted was to embarrass her in front of Kirsch or the other customers. So she decided to wait until lunch to talk to Carmilla in private.

Another hour passed and Laura played minesweeper on her laptop to procrastinate working. Finally, it was time for Carmilla’s lunch break and she eagerly looked up from her laptop to find the barista striding past Laura and out the door. That was _not_ a part of Laura’s plan. She immediately stood up and shoved her laptop in her bag before rushing out the door after Carmilla.

“Carmilla, wait!” Laura yelled as she burst through the door. She heard the beautiful laughter that belonged to the dark-haired girl and her face reddened when she found her casually leaning next to the door.

“Don’t get your panties in a bunch cutie, I’m right here.” Her laughter died down and she gave Laura a sad smile. “Listen, I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable earlier.” She said. Laura furiously shook her head, her eyes widening in surprise.

“No, it was my fault, my stupid mouth wasn’t working and I was nervous and _IthinkI’minlovewithyou_.” Laura gushed, her heart pounding. Carmilla’s eyebrows crinkled in confusion and she tilted her head to the side.

“Wait, what did you just say?” She asked. _Oh shit_. Laura had finally processed the words that spilled out of her mouth and she quickly tried to cover it up.

“Um...I said that I’d love to go out with you.”

Carmilla gave her a tender gaze before reaching out to pull the shorter girl into a hug. Laura was freaking out inside. She wasn’t sure her tiny gay heart could handle two hugs in one day. Not to mention that the woman she’d been pining over for months had asked her out first.

“You can let go now, cutie.” Carmilla whispered to Laura, whose hands were still gripping her lower back. She jumped back with a nervous giggle and flipped her hair over her shoulder. The barista pulled a marker out of the back pocket of her pants and grabbed Laura’s arm. She rolled up the sleeve to expose her skin and carefully wrote out the ten digits of her phone number. She gave Laura another timid smile and grabbed her hand, interlocking their fingers. “Please don’t wait three months to call.”

Laura blushed as the barista led them inside, hand in hand.

 


	7. The Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura works up the nerve to call Carmilla and defends herself from an overly eager Lafontaine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I suck. I'm just really bad at sticking to the schedule I made for this story. Anyway, I finally finished this chapter and now there's only one left to go! Thanks for reading, I hope you're not utterly repulsed by my writing :)

_You’ve got to be fucking kidding me_. Laura cursed the heavens as she rampaged her room in an attempt to find her phone charger. Carmilla told her to call and she _really_ wanted to follow through on that request, however it was impossible to do so when her battery was dead. She imagined the barista sitting alone in a dark room, clutching her phone, desperately waiting for Laura’s call. _Shit_. Laura burst from her room and collided into her father, who was standing in front of her door preparing to knock. She stumbled back, and looked at the burly man with an intense, fiery gaze.

“Woah, everything alright, honey?” He asked in concerned amusement. Laura forced her annoyed facial expression into a forced smile. Her dad knew that she spent all of her time at the cafe, but he didn’t know that it was because of a certain pale, dark-haired barista that she happened to be in love with. Not an easy conversation to have.

“I’m fine, everything’s fine.” She told him.

“Well, I just came to return your phone charger.” He said, dangling the cord in the air. “Thanks for letting me borrow it!”

Laura took the charger from his hand and quickly slammed her door shut. This was it. This charger was the key to making Carmilla fall in love with her and spending the rest of their lives together. Laura plugged the charger into the outlet and shoved the other end into her phone. After a few seconds, it finally came to life. She took a nervous breath before hesitantly copying the number on her arm into her phone. Now, all she had to do was press the green call button. Just one button to be on the phone with Carmilla. One button to potentially embarrass herself and ruin her chances with the beautiful barista. Laura’s hands grew clammy as she analyzed the worst case scenarios that could result from calling Carmilla. What if Carmilla realized that her voice sounded like that of a pubescent boy over the phone? Not too sexy. Or what if her fingers slipped and she accidentally sent Carmilla nudes or something equally obscene? That’s not a risk that Laura was ready to take, so she instead called Lafontaine for moral support.

“Carmilla asked me out and I don’t know what to do, can you come over?” Laura spilled as soon as Lafontaine picked up.

“I’ll bring Harry Potter.” They solemnly responded.

* * *

 

Two hours later, Laura and Lafontaine were in the Hollis basement, sprawled out on the couch with a large tub of popcorn as Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire played on the television in front of them.

“Sooo,” the ginger drawled out, hoping to get Laura to begin talking. She ignored them, and kept her eyes glued to the screen. “The love of your life asked you out?”

Laura groaned in response, stuffing a handful of popcorn into her mouth.

“I don’t understand the problem.” They said in confusion. Laura groaned even louder, shooting Lafontaine an exasperated look.

"I don't want to screw this up." The brunette finally admitted. She squealed as Laf tackled her into a bear hug.

“She’d be crazy not to like you, Frosh!” They exclaimed.

“You’re cute, smart, and endearingly awkward! What’s not to love?” Laf tickled Laura until she had tears of laughter in her eyes. Once Laura wormed out of their grip, they gave her a stern look.

“Call her, _right now_ , Laura.”

\--

Laura’s heart pounded in her chest as she pressed the screen of her phone against her ear. The tone rang three times before she heard a voice on the other end.

“It took you long enough, creampuff.” Carmilla husked into the phone. Laura’s face turned a light pink and she stood up from the couch when Lafontaine began attempting to press their ear to the phone to eavesdrop.

“How did you know it was me?” Laura whisper yelled into the phone, cowering from an overly eager Lafontaine. She ran to the other side of the room, jumping over the couch away from the nosy ginger. Carmilla chuckled on the other end.

“I’ve been waiting for your call all night, cutie.” She replied smoothly. “So how was your day?”

Laura could hear the other woman’s smirk over the phone.

“You asked me that earlier. I’m a very boring person anyway.” She said between heavy breaths, shooing Lafontaine towards the stairs so they would take the hint to leave.

“Well I can tell by the way you’re panting into the phone that you _definitely_ aren’t doing anything boring right now.” Carmilla said. “You wouldn’t happen to be watching any of that porn that you seem to enjoy so much, now would you?”  

Laura couldn’t believe that the barista was still teasing her about the porn incident. It must have been at least two months since it happened. Lafontaine shook their head, laughing as they stomped up the stairs and out the door. Laura cleared her throat and waited a moment to collect her thoughts.

“You there, creampuff?” Carmilla asked.

“Yes, yeah, definitely.” Laura assured her. The other woman chuckled over the phone, and Laura imagined her throwing back her head, her dark hair spilling down her back.

“Good. Can I pick you up in ten?” She asked. Laura jumped up in shock, dropping her phone to the ground. She cursed loudly, her dad immediately scolding her from upstairs.

“Sorry dad!” She called out while checking the damage on her phone. A crack trailed from the bottom corner of her screen all the way up to the top. Just her luck. She placed the cracked screen back to her ear, where Carmilla was laughing hysterically into the phone. Laura groaned.

“I’ll text you my address,” she finally replied once the laughter subsided.

“Great, I’ll see you soon, cutie.” Carmilla said eagerly before hanging up.

Laura sighed happily to herself, soaking in the moment. She imagined sitting across from the other woman at a fancy restaurant, holding hands at the movie theater, or even sharing drinks at the bar on the other side of town. She texted Carmilla her address, wincing at the newly cracked screen of her phone, before bolting upstairs to the bathroom. She looked into the mirror with horror, realizing that she was in no shape to go out in public, and definitely not to be seen by Carmilla. In her baggiest sweatpants and with frazzled hair, it would take a miracle for Laura to get ready in ten minutes. _Shit_.

 

****  
  



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